Peninsula Enterprise, February 25, 1899
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Infrastructure -- Public - Government : Welfare
The singular spectacle was present on the street in Drummondtown on Thursday of two vehicles filled with negroes enroute to the poor-house. Emma Downing, her children and grandchildren, ten in all, made up the group. They come from Craddock Neck and being too lazy to work have long been a nuisance and a burden to the people of that community.
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Fields -- Fertilizer
It is estimated that over 400 carloads of guano have been purchased by the farmers of Northampton and Accomac counties in the past two months. Population considered, it is safe to state that Accomac is not "in it." Our information is that the farmers of this county have bought no more than usual this season.
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Infrastructure -- Public - Government : Public healthInfrastructure -- Public - Government : Town
At a special meeting held by the town council of Cape Charles, Tuesday night, an ordinance was passed compelling all the residents of Cape Charles over five years of age to be vaccinated inside of ten days. The colored schools were visited on Wednesday by a physician and the town sergeant and about forty children vaccinated.
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Transportation -- Water - Channel and harbor dredging
Among the changes made in the river and harbor bill by the Senate Committee on Commerce, was the reduction of the appropriation for the improvement of Cape Charles harbor from $20,000 to $10,000.
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Infrastructure -- Commercial - Residential construction
A handsome dwelling will be in course of erection early in March on Lilliston avenue, Drummondtown, for the occupancy of Mr. G. Welly Coard. Materials for same are now being placed on the grounds.
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Weather -- FreezesInfrastructure -- Public - Government : Life-saving serviceTransportation -- Railroad - FreightSea -- Shellfish - Oystering : SeasideWeather -- Snow stormsSea -- WreckingTransportation -- Water - FreightInfrastructure -- Public - Government : Postal service
Chincoteague.
On the 10th the cold wave struck us and the thermometer registered 4 below. Our bay was frozen up from that time until the 20th, and "not open to travel" except that W. C. Bunting and Jos. Pruitt, Jr. walked over on the ice and Mr. Pruitt and Jos. T. Rowley walked off.
During the freeze here our people had lots of fun, skating and shooting ducks.
Several Life Saving surfmen are home sick this week, due to exposure during the late cold weather.
The day after the freeze was broken up the steamer carried to Franklin City 1,600 bushels of oysters.
The crews of several vessels in Tom's Cove during the storm deserted their boats and went to Assateague Station, where they were cared for by Captain Rich and crew.
Mr. F. Elton Jones, one of the owners of the Annie Reynolds, sunk off Metompkin, is in Norfolk this week to get a diver to unload and raise her.
The services of the Wishart Point Transportation Co. during the freeze deserves special mention. Mail was delivered to us by said company, a thing that never was done before, every day that the trains ran and on Sunday all that had accumulated at Franklin City in 10 days also was delivered by said company. The Globe of said company was the last to leave here before the freeze and the first to make a trip afterwards -- and made two trips before the Chincoteague could cross the bay.
Schooner Bennett arrived this week from Norfolk with a cargo of shingles for W. N. Conant.
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Transportation -- Railroad - FreightFields -- Livestock - SheepWeather -- Snow stormsAfrican-Americans -- Work - FisheriesWatermen -- Personal injuryAfrican-Americans -- Race relations
Grangeville.
The public roads in this vicinity have never, in the memory of man, been as quaggy as now.
The rush of "sweets" from this section this week to Keller and Melfa stations looks more like September than bleak winter. It is reported that one poor fellow in hauling them stuck in the mire and broke one of his horse's legs.
Mr. G. Walter Mapp, in acting the good shepherd to his large flock of sheep, only lost two lambs during the blizzard, whilst others, less fortunate, lost nearly all of theirs.
Latest advices confirm the report that the frozen bodies of Henry Snead, Kary Snead, John E. Bell, Wm. Jubilee and Tom Teague, all colored, were found and identified near Hog Island by the Life Saving crew of Cobb's Island station. These were all industrious colored men whose homes are near here -- one of whom (Tom Teague) was a carpenter and a useful man in the neighborhood.
Sally Bailey, a highly respected old colored woman, died at her home near Grangeville, on the 16th inst. "Aunt Sally," as she was called, before the 60's belonged to Mr. James Parramore, deceased. She was a true type of the well bred and well tutored servant, belonging to a class now, unhappily, nearly extinct. "Her people," by which term she loyally and affectionately referred to the family of her former master, as well as the people of this community will regret to hear of her death.
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Weather -- Snow storms
Onancock.
The bright, warm weather this week has greatly improved the condition of our town. The sidewalks have dried and settled, generally, and many people are out for recreation. Few ladies have been in from the country, as the roads are yet really unfit for driving. With a continuance of good weather the regular traffic will soon be resumed.
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Forests -- Barrel factories Tourists and sportsmen -- Field sports - Hunting : Waterfowl and shorebirdFields -- Crops - Sweet potatoes : PricesTransportation -- Railroad - Freight
Onley.
Mr. B. T. Parks and brother, George, bagged 40 fine ducks on a recent gunning trip.
Mr. M. W. Bull has been quite busy this week, pulling down his barrel factory and selling the lumber.
Two cars were loaded with sweet potatoes here this week by Mr. Smith Walter, for which he paid not less than $100 per barrel.
Roads in some places in this section of late have been almost impassible. A horse of Mr. A. G. Kelly "got stuck" in the mire a few days ago and was only saved by timely help.
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Infrastructure -- Public : Sidewalks, etc.Transportation -- Railroad - FreightInfrastructure -- Public : Churches
Parksley.
Capt. James R. Hickman is improving his store on Bennett St., with a side walk of brick.
On Tuesday there were shipped from this station four cars of sweet potatoes and one of oysters.
The Baptist of our town have received their furniture for their new church.
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Weather -- Snow stormsNatural resources -- Conservation - GameFields -- Crops - Sweet potatoes : Seed and slips
Temperanceville.
Many of our birds perished during the late storm. Nine coveys of quail, one hundred or more, were fed and saved from perishing by Mr. Henry E. Byrd, of our village, and many more might have been saved if other sportsmen in the county had shown the same interest in them which he did.
Many of the people in this section are very much concerned at this time about the condition of their potato seed. It would be a blessing to them, in the opinion of some of us, if the supply to each farmer, not only in this section but throughout the Peninsula, could be reduced from 30 to 50 bushels. Remunerative prices might then be expected for the crop grown by them.
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Weather -- Snow storms
Wachapreague.
Providentially, none of our citizens were seriously endangered by the late blizzard, though many of our boatmen were frozen up down the bay and were compelled to walk over the ice to their homes.
Loss of Life and Property in the Late Storm.
Weather -- Snow stormsAfrican-Americans -- Work - FisheriesWatermen -- Personal injurySea -- Shellfish - Oystering : Seaside
The sloop Mattie, belonging to Mrs. J. E. Mears, of near Wachapreague, drifted out of Cobbs inlet on Sunday during the storm under Bone Island beach. Her crew of three from that point started for Lafferty Beach but only two of them succeeded in reaching it. One of them, a colored man, by the name of Jubilee, died from the effects of cold on the way.
The bodies of four drowned and frozen colored men were washed ashore on Smith's Island on last Saturday. The men were attired in oystermen's clothing and it is believed were from the Eastern Shore.
Shelly Banks an old colored man, who drives a delivery wagon from Cape Charles to Capeville and who attempted to make the trip on Saturday night during the storm was found dead a few days after in a snow drift about two miles from his home.
On Monday during the storm eleven oyster boats drifted to sea from Brighton and one from Myrtle inlet and had not been heard from since. Their value is estimated at $5,000 or more and the loss of them has paralyzed the oyster industry in the lower end of the Peninsula.
Pocomoke Smallpox Cases.
DiseaseInfrastructure -- Public - Government : Quarantine, local
A prominent citizen of Pocomoke City, writing to us about the smallpox cases, says: "Rumors are being circulated about our community that are false. Our people are going and coming in our town as usual and strangers are allowed to do the same without molestation."
The following authorized by the leading citizens of the town also has been sent to us for publication:
As all sorts of false rumors have been circulated within the last few days in regard to the small-pox in Pocomoke City it is but just to this enterprising town, to say, there is not at this time a single-case of small-pox inside of the city limits. It is a fact, however, that three negroes who had been at work in Norfolk came home a few days ago sick and their disease was pronounced "a mild case of small-pox." As soon as this fact was known the Mayor acting under the direction of the State Board of Health had the patients removed to a hospital built outside of the city in an unfrequented spot of timber land away from any county roads approaching the city. The houses, which the patients occupied prior to bring removed to the hospital, are on the suburbs of the city and not on leading roads of approach to the town and are closely guarded night and day so that no persons are allowed to go in and out of the premises, hence with all these precautions it is almost impossible for the disease to spread and the fears of the citizens of town and vicinity have been entirely allayed, and there has been no interruption to the business and social activities of the community nor do we feel that there is any danger to persons visiting the place.
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Infrastructure -- Public - Government : Spanish-American War
The latest advices are, that Manila was set on fire and that an uprising of the natives was attempted in that city on Wednesday. The uprising was checked, but a thousand dwellings and hundreds of business houses were destroyed. The presumption is that the Filipinos started the conflagration. A few days previous the news was received, that the Filipinos would not fight our troops in the open any more but we must seek them in the future in their jungles. These things seem to suggest, that the Filipinos count as nothing their treasures in their struggles for liberty and have concluded, that they can worry us by a guerilla warfare into letting them alone if they cannot win in a fight with us in the regular way. Our victories so far in the Philippines have been won by the expenditure of millions of dollars and by the loss of many valuable lives and the indications are, that we have a war on our hands, the termination of which we cannot see, and which when the end comes will be a curse to the American people. "Destiny" points that way, however, in the opinion of Mr. McKinley and to carry out his imperialistic schemes, it seems, he is to be permitted to trample underfoot the constitution and usurp with impunity the powers of the Government such as no other Chief Magistrate of the nation has dared to do before him. "The interests of humanity" too, say the imperialists, demand that we continue to slaughter and be slaughtered in the Philippines, and of course the war is to go on for the present regardless of blood and treasure. "Destiny," however, may be revealed in a different way when the American people have the opportunity again to speak at the polls, and we mistake the sentiment of the American people, if they do not spurn the bribe of imperialism and hurl from power those who now disgrace the high places to which they have elevated them.
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Infrastructure -- Public - Government : Spanish-American War
The life of one American soldier or sailor is more valuable than all the Philippine Islands put together. After we shall have conquered Aguinaldo by the sacrifice of some of the nation's best blood, what have we gained? Nothing more than a territory to which our people can never become acclimated, and a burden that will press heavily upon the taxpayers of this country. -- Omaha World-Herald.
Millions of American people are in accord with the opinion expressed above but of course their views are treated with contempt by the President and count as nothing with him or his advisers. The President can change his mind with such facility, when he thinks it is his interest to do so, it is possible even that he has forgotten that he is the author of the expression, "that forcible annexation is criminal aggression."